The sun is expected to fade by mid-afternoon, as cloud cover thickens and makes way for some possible rain early evening mixed with snowflakes in some areas.

Snow and rain are sweeping parts of Pennsylvania and will mostly transition into rain by the time the quick-moving system reaches Connecticut because of the warm temperatures, according to First Alert Meteorologist Ryan Hanrahan. The biggest brunt of the precipitation will hit southwestern Connecticut and the coastline as a surge of moisture moves across the state, bringing rain and possible snowflakes close to 4 p.m. No snow accumulation is expected.

Temperatures will likely dip into the 30s in the evening, with possible rain and wet snow.

Thursday and Friday should get warmer, with some rain in the forecast. On Thursday, temperatures will average in the 50s and it could get as warm as the mid-60s on Friday as we head into Easter weekend. That is subject to change depending on whether the storm system stays on course or sweeps further south.

Snow falling throughout the day has left wet spots on the roads that are icing over and causing dozens of crashes and spinouts as temperatures drop.

State police said slick roads are causing problems "all over the place."

"Troops are very busy tonight with crashes due to this awful weather," said state police spokesman Sgt. Shane Hassett.

Most crashes have been minor, but a collision on Interstate 84 westbound in Farmington shut down the highway near exit 39 for a period of time Saturday evening. Emergency responders searched an embankment off the side of the highway and found a car rolled over in the woods.

Hassett said the driver was hospitalized for treatment of minor injuries and received a verbal warning for traveling too fast.

State police said they've responded to two dozen crashes on I-84 in the Danbury area alone. A number of additional incidents have been reported on I-84, Route 8, I-91 and I-691. Police said Route 15 is also a sheet of ice.

Snow will continue falling past midnight and temperatures will dip down into the 20s overnight. Skies will clear Sunday, with highs near 40.

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Even after Tropical Storm Irene and Superstorm Sandy battered the Connecticut coast, a recent survey of 1,100 residents living along the shoreline shows that many underestimate storm threats.

"When we asked people, what's the most likely cause of injury or death in a hurricane, most people thought it was blown or falling objects from high winds. Turns out, most hurricanes cause injury or death from storm surge," said Anthony Leiserowitz, director of the Yale Project on Climate Change Communication, which conducted the study.

During Irene and Sandy, many shoreline towns posted mandatory evacuation orders. The survey found only 21 percent of residents would leave their homes in a Category 2 hurricane, while 58 percent would leave if they were ordered to.

"Seventy percent of Connecticut residents don't even know that they live in an evacuation zone, as an example, which is kind of amazing, and likewise, three-quarters have never even seen an evacuation map, so they don't know how to get out if they need to," said Leiserowitz.

Some have said, however, they learned from the last two major storms and understand the importance of heeding the warnings.

"If they tell you to get out of here, you should get out of here," said Shelton resident Dave Youngquist.

New Haven Deputy Emergency Management Director Rick Fontana said the city issued mandatory evacuations during the two storms. Some people left and others stayed.

He said the evacuations were for the safety of the residents and first responders, who wouldn’t have been able to reach flooded areas during an emergency.

Plunging temperatures caused any moisture left on roadways to freeze overnight into Sunday and the windchill continues the cold start to spring.

After 1 to 8 inches of snow fell across the state and temperatures warmed Saturday in the 40s, it dropped to 20s overnight. It will likely be in the 30s for the remainder of Sunday with potential for wind gusts of 40 miles-per-hour. The windchill factor is making it feel like temperatures are in the teens and 20s.

Sunday and Monday will be the coldest days this week, with temperatures in the 30s on Monday.

It will likely begin to warm up again on Wednesday into Thursday, but rain is also in the forecast.

It may have been the first day of spring Friday, but winter just wouldn't let go as snow blanketed the state and caused problems on the roads. As residual flurries wrap up on Saturday, the temperatures will take a plunge overnight, possibly creating slick conditions.

Snow moved out around midnight into Saturday as driving conditions deteriorated throughout the evening Friday and overnight. Flurries continued Saturday morning and the snow is expected to end by midday, bringing as much as another inch, according to NBC Connecticut First Alert meteorologist Bob Maxon.

By early evening, we may see a quick burst of rain and snow showers. As temperatures drop into the 20s, ice may develop on the roadways overnight, possibly making for a slippery commute on Sunday. Wind gusts are also expected to pick up.

The St. Patrick's Day parade is scheduled for Saturday and officials spent the morning getting ready for it and shoveling sidewalks.

As of 10:30 p.m. Friday, 4.3 inches of new snow were recorded in Hamden, 3.8 inches in North Haven, 3.3 in New Fairfield, 3 in Burlington, 2.5 in Prospect and 2.0 in Coventry.

There were winter weather advisories in effect until 4 a.m. Saturday for Middlesex, New Haven, New London and Fairfield counties.

The weather will warm up slightly on Saturday with highs in the lower 40s. We'll see fair and cold weather come Sunday through Tuesday.

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Whipping winds of up to 50 mph have brought down trees and power lines in several communities for the second day in a row.

Eversource Energy reported a total of more than 5,000 power outages around the state Wednesday afternoon. Many outages are concentrated in Portland, where a fallen tree took down wires and a utility pole snapped on Cox Road near Route 17.

Sunrise Hill Drive was closed at Ridgewood Road in West Hartford while crews worked to remove a tree from the road. The fire department in Windsor Locks reported that wires came down across South Street.

School buses in Mansfield were also affected. The school sent an alert Wednesday saying bus 1 was about 25 minutes late because of a fallen tree.

Wind gusts of up to 58 mph brought down trees and wires in the northern part of the state, causing more than 12,000 power outages and prompting several road closures late Tuesday afternoon and overnight into Wednesday.

According to Eversource Energy, there are some lingering power outages, including 110 in Norwalk and 121 in Wilton, as of 7:47 a.m. More than 12,000 people lost electricity at the height of the wind storm, a number that has since dropped down to about 754 on Wednesday morning. The greatest number of outages were reported in Hartford.

Greenwich emergency crews were busy Tuesday night due to high winds and black ice on the roads, according to police. Butternut Hallow Road will remain closed until 8 a.m. Stanwich Road is closed between Cat Rock Road and Hill Road. Taconic Road in Greenwich is open to one lane as Eversource crews work on repairing wires hindered by a fallen tree. The tree has been cleared.

Rockville Hospital in Vernon also lost electricity and resorted to a generator, according to a hospital spokesperson.

Buckland Road was closed for hours near the intersection of Route 30 in South Windsor after a power line blew into the roadway, according to South Windsor Police Chief Matthew Reed. The road reopened around 9:30 p.m. Tuesday after Eversource Energy removed a live wire from the road.

Fallen trees were also reported on Chapel Street and Ellington Road in South Windsor, on Miller Road in West Hartford, Berlin Street in Berlin and on Aspenwood Drive in the Weatogue section of Simsbury. Hartford police said trees came down in the city's West End and North End.

Route 117 was closed between Village Drive and Church Hill Road in Ledyard while crews work to remove a tree that fell onto primary wires, according to the police department. Eversource Energy is en route to make repairs.

Service along the Metro-North Danbury Branch was delayed 10-15 minutes due to downed wires in the area of Branchville, according to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

Trees also came down onto homes in South Windsor, Hartford and West Hartford.

South Windsor police said no one was hurt and nothing was damaged when a tree fell onto the house at 1201 Strong Road in South Windsor. Another tree struck a home on Barbour Street in Hartford, while a third toppled onto a home in the Astronaut Village neighborhood near Westfarms Mall in West Hartford.

Meanwhile, East Windsor police and fire officials were called to Cricket Road after a cable TV line blew off a house and onto a school bus. Police said only the bus driver was on board at the time. Police pulled the wire off the bus and firefighters moved it from the roadway.

Milford and Ansonia have a new agreement in place to help both towns thaw out after one of the most road-damaging winters in a long time.

“We have an asphalt recycler which really no other town in the state has,” said Milford Mayor Benjamin Blake. “There are a few of them out there but we’re unique. We’ve had this piece of equipment for the last 10 years.”

The Milford Public Works Department’s Begala machine melts chunks of asphalt at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. The substance becomes what’s known in the industry as “hot patch” and is then used to repair potholes and sections of roads that have been damaged by combinations of plows, ice and snow, and product meant to improve traction for vehicles.

The Begala asphalt melting machine in Milford is valuable during a time of year where it’s difficult to find a place to melt asphalt.

“During the winter months, the asphalt plants are closed down so the other municipalities, if they don’t have asphalt recyclers, they’re out of luck,” said Blake

Ansonia’s Department of Public Works has struck a deal to pay Milford $50 per ton of hot patch. Trucks from Ansonia have been busy too.

“We’ve been averaging about 10 tons ourselves,” said Tom Hunt, a highway foreman with the Milford DPW. “The city of Ansonia has been coming down and we’ve been helping them out. We give them about 4-8 tons a day.”

Hunt describes this season as “the worst in a generation” for potholes.

Milford’s mayor said the deal to allow Ansonia to purchase hot patch at a reduced rate is catching on. Other towns are inquiring about using Milford's Begala, which Blake said is the kind of program that taxpayers expect.

“We’re always looking to make things more efficient and streamline the way our local government operates and looking for new streams of revenue,” he said.

More than a dozen Waterbury postal workers have been hurt since January thanks to winter weather, which has made for slippery conditions, blocked-off mailboxes and rambunctious dogs.

According to a spokesperson for the U.S. Postal Service, 15 mail carriers in Waterbury have suffered on-the-job injuries over the past three months.

Although most of those injuries are attributable to ice and snow, three postal workers suffered serious dog bites caused by cooped-up pups who rush out of the house when children on vacation come to the door, the USPS said.

The other dozen workers who were hurt slipped and fell on snow and ice while trying to deliver mail.

As the first signs of spring become evident around Connecticut, the state is offering advice to homeowners whose properties could be affected by leaks from melting snow.

Officials are urging homeowners to check roofs both from the outside and the attic if possible. Look for signs of water damage to ceilings and walls, and clear all gutter spouts of snow so they can drain properly.

Regardless of whether you need repair work, seek out and research registered home improvement contractors so you know who to call in the event a problem arises.

All contractors should be registered with the Department of Consumer Protections and have proper liability and worker's compensation insurance, where applicable.

Ask subcontractors working on your home to sign lien wavers to protect you if they aren't paid, and avoid salesmen who offer to handle all insurance claims or promise there won't be a deductible.

Obtain a written contract before any work starts, and never pay in full up front. Pay enough to cover the start of the job and continue to pay as work progresses. Make a final payment only after the job has been finished and you're happy with the quality of the work.

Temperatures on Friday morning tied the record cold of 10 degrees in Bridgeport for this date, but more seasonable weather is on the way. We just have to be patient for a little while longer.

The average temperature for this time of year is around 44 degrees, and we’re moving in the right direction, with the high temperature of 42 expected on Tuesday and an increasing warmup on Wednesday and Thursday.

While we have a couple more days of 20- and 30-degree weather, one bright note is the lack of snow in the weekend forecast for the first time in several weeks.

This past Saturday, Emergency Animal Response Service – a volunteer organization that helps rescue and shelter animals during disasters – saved horses trapped inside a barn that crumpled from the snow in East Hampton.

"Essentially the same type of training that a fire department goes through for people getting people out of collapsed buildings, for example, except we focus on how to do that with animals," explained rescuer Jon Nowinski.

The barn at Stirrup Fun Stables on Mack Road in Lebanon also gave way to the pressure of snow. The horse rescue organization said the barn was crucial to operations and insurance won't cover the cost.

The structure itself will be $150,000 to replace, and ownership will have to shell out much to cover the cost of labor, according to the barn owner.

It's a devastating blow many now face.

"There's not a lot of insurances covering these collapses anymore. It's like flood insurance. Good luck," said Schaulis.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to help Stirrup Fun Stables cover the cost of repairs.

As winter weather continues into March, New Haven – like many other communities – is scrambling to compensate for a snow budget that has been totally drained.

The city is moving $300,000 from vacancies in the Department of Public Works to cover this week's storms.

Officials hope it will be enough. If it isn't, the city will have to find money elsewhere.

"We don't think that we'll run out, but it will make it difficult to do some of the other things we hope to do in the summer time," said Mayor Toni Harp.

City officials hope they won't have to move money from other departments, which could jeopardize programs like the one to keep school buildings open during spring break.

In the meantime, there's no end in sight for DPW crews. They worked through the day Wednesday to clean up slushy streets and prepare for a re-freeze that could prove dangerous tonight.

"We're worried about flooding. I've seen, as I was coming to work today, I saw a lot of our street corners were flooded," said Harp. "They're out there working really hard, so we can make sure things are as safe as possible."

Relentless snow has buried high school playing fields and could jeopardize spring seasons if it doesn't melt soon.

The sign on the tennis courts near Manchester High School says "tennis shoes only" but right now, only snowshoes can get you near the snow-covered nets.

Down the hill, hurdles peeking out from under the snow reveals just how much accumulation has to melt before the school can use its track.

"I suspect that coaches will get out here with some shovels and snowblowers and take at least a coat off there so the sun gets to it," said the athletic director, Lindsey Boutilier. "We'll be out here, my bet is, March 23, when we're due to get out here."

Practices for spring sports don't begin until then, except for baseball, which starts March 16. Boutilier said the snow has created a level playing field: all Connecticut high schools' fields are buried in snow.

"Everybody's worried," said the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference Executive Director Karissa Niehoff. "The rain increases the weight of the snow and it's so deep right now that removal basically is impossible."

She warned that the snow sits above a frozen tundra, and after the snow melts the ground will be soggy for days.

The first high school games are slated for April 8, and some schools may have to reschedule until later in the spring, even if that means teams will play four or five games a week.

Thursday's snowstorm ushered in much colder air, creating the potential for record lows overnight.

Most of the state will see temperatures between 0 and 10 degrees Thursday night into Friday morning. We're expecting a low of about 4 degrees at Bradley Airport and could see temperatures closer to 0 in the northwest hills.

Record cold is likely along the shoreline, according to Chief First Alert Meteorologist Brad Field. The current record in Bridgeport stands at 11 degrees, and we're projecting a low of 10 degrees overnight.

It comes in the wake of a snowstorm that once again centered around southeastern Connecticut. The New London area received up to 8 inches of fresh snow, while accumulation in the rest of the state ranged from 2 to 6 inches. Northern Connecticut saw just a dusting.

Looking ahead to the weekend, skies are clear.

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Snow turning to sleet and freezing rain made the Tuesday evening commute tricky for travelers in Connecticut.

Just after 6:30 p.m., traffic was steady and even bumper to bumper at times coming out of Hartford on Interstate 84. As snow intensified and later turned to ice, conditions only got worse.

Manchester resident Barbara Bolton said snow and ice made the roads "just very slick."

Corey Jenkens, of Hartford, described them as "ugly" and "bad."

It took him 20 minutes to get from East Hartford to Manchester, twice as long as usual.

Meanwhile, Tim Rush was bracing for what he expected to be an hour-long drive to Simsbury, a trip that usually takes him 20 minutes.

”The highways are bad right now. We need them to plow it,” said Rush.

Department of Transportation crews were busy loading up at the East Hartford garage along I-84 Tuesday night.

"The roads are absolutely horrid out there. I did about 15 miles per hour all the way down 91. It was horrible out there," said Roxanne Mulvey.

Another snowstorm has crews across the state working through the night.

"Tonight's going to be a critical night. Some of the crews have been in since four this morning, and I don't know that they'll get any sleep tonight," said Waterbury Department of Public WOrks Deputy Director David Simpson.

During the storm, crews are busy mixing and gathering salt and sand to place on the roads as trucks plow away the snowy mess. Their job is only half done when the storm ends, though. They continue working to remove what winter left behind.

"The crews have told me that they're very tired, but they're working. They're doing their jobs. They're responding every time. We're watching them for sleep and rest," said Simpson. "They're responding admirably every time. I can't tell you how proud I am of all the city crews working for us."

As the snow turned to ice and then rain Tuesday night, the warmer weather was both good and bad news. While some of the snow will finally melt, potholes will pose a problem.

"The change in the temperature is what's going to affect the potholes, and that'll be the next challenge that we face at public works," said Simpson.

"The potholes are bad," said Gomez. "When the snow clears up, the bumps and everything you go right into a pothole. I walked into a pothole. You don't walk into potholes."

DPW will also be keeping an eye out on how fast the snow melts. If it melts too quickly it could cause flooding, so crews will need to be on top of clearing storm drains.

Waterbury has already received a transfer of funds for it contracting account and sand and salt account. Officials say they've advised the administration that the city's overtime account is at its peak.

The city says it has a contingency account and officials prepared but hope the latest transfers will take them through the rest of the season.

Although hardware stores are usually gearing up for spring this time of year, with more snow in the forecast, winter supplies are still in demand.

Rice Hardware in Windsor should be getting ready to bring in products for landscaping and gardening, everything from rakes to fertilizer, according to Dennis Rice. But this March, like this winter, is turning out to be anything but basic, meaning tomorrow's order will look a little different.

“Everyone is still calling up for calcium and snow rakes,” said Rice. “We’ve been out for a month but with everyone calling my brother is trying to get a spring order in tomorrow that’s going to be a combination of both.”

Ahead of the state’s next snowstorm Tuesday, those calls kept coming. While Rice’s winter section is limited, Richard Gurski said he was able to find a specific snow shovel the chain retailers were cleared out of.

“I went to Home Depot and a whole bunch of Lowes and different stores and could not find this type of shovel,” Gurski said.

Rice said right now the store is in between seasons, so when it comes to winter orders, management is doing its best to find a balance.

“We are not going to go overboard because we need all that room for the fertilizer,” said Rice.

His hope is if they stock for spring, it might just get here, meaning his days of staring at his fishing gear are one step closer to days where he can use them.

“Couple more weeks and we are going to see 50-60 degree weather,” he said.

Another winter storm Sunday meant another parking ban in Hartford, prompting the city to cancel school so residents could park in school lots. Now the city is considering a policy change.

"We may look for a different policy," explained the mayor's spokesperson, Maribel La Luz.

Carlos DelValle has two children in Hartford schools. We caught up with him as he cleared his car at Bulkeley High School, where he parked during the city's latest parking ban.

"Kids in school and no parking ban, yes. I mean, I can see if it was nine, 10 inches of snow... but for something like this? No. No. Kids should have been in school," said DelValle. "They did not need this parking ban last night, no."

Hartford was one of only a few districts in Connecticut that canceled classes because of the storm, which dropped about four inches in the city.

Most districts opened late.

Because residents are allowed to keep their cars in school lots during citywide parking bans, plows were unable to clear the parking lots, preventing access to schools.

City officials said they consider the impact on schools every time they implement a parking ban, which likely means schools will close so streets can be cleared for public safety reasons.

"We're asking for a little more patience. We have been hit with a lot of snow," said La Luz.

La Luz said discussions between city and school district officials about the parking policy will take place soon.

Not all residents were upset with the city's decision to implement a parking ban and close schools Monday.

"There was a lot of snow yesterday, so I think whenever there's a lot of snow it's necessary so they can clean up the streets and everything can be cleaned up," said Chris Bogle, a Hartford resident who also parked at Bulkeley High School during the ban.

La Luz said the city also has to consider the condition of sidewalks and the safety of people on board the 500 buses that transport children to and from Hartford schools every day.

"No one really wants schools closed," she said.

A spokesman for Hartford Public Schools did not return a request for comment.

As the day goes on, temperatures will increase to about 40 or 45 degrees in most of the state, but parts of northern Connecticut could be closer to freezing.

Another, possibly more significant snowfall could impact the state on Wednesday night into Thursday.

However, the heaviest accumulation will likely affect areas to our south, including New Jersey, Pennsylvania and D.C., although several inches of snow are possible throughout the state.

A winter storm watch has been issued for the shoreline from Wednesday evening through Thursday.

Southern Connecticut could get 2 to 4 inches of snow between Wednesday night and Thursday, with towns near the Massachusetts border get next to nothing, according to NBC Connecticut meteorologist Bob Maxon.

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More snow fell on Sunday, adding to the piles that have been building for weeks. Here's a look at the new snow that fell:

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When winter just won't let up, there's only one thing to do – build an igloo.

If you're Wolcott resident James Waugh, you make it 6 feet tall, string holiday lights, set up a wood stove and carve out a bar.

"When I said some people never grow up... he told me better than sitting on [the] sofa," said his sister, Katie Waugh, who over some photos.

Some southern parts of the state are under a winter storm warning through Monday morning as a storm moves in that could drop up to 6 inches of snow statewide.

A winter storm warning has been issued for New London, New Haven and southern Middlesex counties through 7 a.m. Monday due to possible freezing rain that could mix in around 10 or 11 p.m., according to First Alert meteorologist Monica Cryan.

Snow showers began Sunday morning and the heaviest snowfall is expected between 5 p.m. Sunday and 1 a.m. Monday, bringing totals of about 3 to 6 inches by the time the storm wraps between 3 and 5 a.m. Monday. Southern and eastern Connecticut could see slightly higher totals closer to 7 inches.

The sun may emerge during the morning commute Monday as the snow moves out.

Bridgeport had record-breaking cold Saturday at about 8 degrees and Windsor Locks was 2 degrees, almost as cold as the record -1, according to Sweeney.

More snow could be headed our way Tuesday evening ahead of another storm system. The snow could change to an icy mix and transition to rain by Wednesday morning as warmer air moves in, making for a messy Wednesday morning commute.

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February is on track to become the coldest month on record in Connecticut.

As of midnight Wednesday into Thursday, the average temperature in the Hartford area this month has been 15.7 degrees, according to First Alert Meteorologist Ryan Hanrahan. That’s an entire degree below the current record of 16.5 degrees, which was set in February 1934.

This month is also expected to break the record in Bridgeport, which stands at 21.9 degrees and was set in 2004. The average temperature in the Bridgeport area so far this month is 19.7 degrees.

Other cold months of note include the following:

16.8 degrees in Hartford, January 1970
16.9 degrees in Hartford, January 1961
17.4 degrees in Hartford, January 1918

21.9 degrees in Bridgeport, January 2004
22.1 degrees in Bridgeport, January 1981
23.1 degrees in Bridgeport, January 1982
23.3 degrees in Bridgeport, December 1989

Records date back to 1948 in Bridgeport and 1905 in the Hartford area.

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Last week when rain was in the weather forecast, a state senator who is also first selectman of Sprague wrought her hands in worry over flooding concerns.

The rain didn't materialize but the worry has, as snowbanks block catch basins and storm drains in southeastern Connecticut.

"They're 6-foot-tall snow banks that are completely frozen, rock-hard solid, that we're having to move inch by inch," said State Sen. Cathy Osten.

It's taken heavy equipment to get ice off the catch basins, and some are still clogged. That means melting snow may find somewhere else to go.

"It would be stuck on the top of the road beds, it would be in people's yards, it could flood into people's basements," she said. "It will be a very difficult situation for all of us to deal with."

She hopes people will treat catch basins the way they treat fire hydrants and clear them after it snows again.

"If we melt too fast, we will have flooding in all the towns that are impacted by this very unusual winter storm season," Osten said.

The coldest air of the season has descended upon Connecticut, breaking records that have stood as long as 100 years on Tuesday and that led to several school delays, as well as some cancellations at Bradley Airport this morning.

The windchill is making it feel as cold as -22 degrees in Willimantic, while the thermometer read as low as -6 degrees at Bradley in the Hartford area and 1 degree in Bridgeport.

Before Tuesday, the coldest temperature on record in the Hartford area for Feb. 24 was -4 degrees from 1907 and the coldest record in Bridgeport was 12 degrees in 1968.

During the day on Tuesday, the sun will come out and temperatures will climb into the teens inland and will reach about 20 along the shoreline. The Rhode Island border of the state could see a dusting of snow, coating the ground with up to an inch.

Wednesday will be breezy, with highs around 31. It will get colder on Thursday with temperatures in the 20s.

We could see more temperatures around 0 degrees from Thursday night into Friday.

After a sunny close to the weekend, where temperatures rose into the 40s, wind chills have brought brutal cold on Monday and caused icy roads.

A rollover crash on Tolland Turnpike in Willington between Route 32 and Glass Factory Road was one of many crashes this morning. Injuries are reported after a car crashed into a snowbank at Randall Drive and Route 75 in Enfield.

Temperatures will be in the teens inland and high teens to 20s on the shoreline by mid-afternoon on Monday, and black ice due to melting and refreezing has created slippery roads.

With several instances of subzero temperatures reported over the past few weeks, February is on track to become the coldest month on record and wind chills will make it feel sub-zero or in the low single digits in some areas in the evening.

February is on track to become the coldest month on record, and bitter temperatures have placed a financial strain on homeless shelters staying open around the clock.

“We’ve got to continue to provide three meals a day, as we do, and we find a way to do that, even though it’s killing our budget,” explained Paul Iadarola, executive director of St. Vincent DePaul Mission in Waterbury.

Iadarola explained that the shelter is required to keep its doors open 24 hours per day under the state’s severe weather protocol, which Gov. Dannel Malloy has extended through March 1.

Already, the Waterbury shelter is $12,000 over its food budget, and will likely surpass the $20,000 mark if the cold snap continues into March, officials said. Now Iadarola is turning to the community for support.

“I’m the biggest beggar in the city of Waterbury. I go around begging for money,” Iadarola said jokingly. “We send out letters asking people for help.”

The influx of people seeking relief from the cold is also taking a toll on shelter staffing.

“It’s harder because there’s more people, more people want food, more people coming to the door,” said night supervisor Robert Thaier.

Shelter officials said recent snowstorms have resulted in extended hours, with many employees averaging about $4,000 per week in overtime.

Experts are warning pet owners of the dangers a harsh winter can pose to their four-legged friends.

“They can get frostbite on their paws, that can be a very big problem for our pets being outside,” said Dr. Kris Park of the East Side Veterinary Clinic. “Just overall, the extreme temperatures are very dangerous for them.”

An easy place to start, said Alicia Wright with the Connecticut Humane Society, is by examining your surroundings.

“You also want to think about the roadways and your driveway,” said Wright. “There is a lot of salt out there. It's dangerous, so if you do take your pet for a walk down the street, you want to wash off their paws.”

Another simple solution is to safeguard winter supplies. Park said pet owners may not often think about anti-freeze poisoning, which poses a real threat.

“If they lick it, that can be extremely lethal,” said Park.

When it comes to time spent outside, experts emphasize the importance of knowing your breed. Animals of various sizes have different winter needs, and sometimes their fur isn't quite enough to keep them warm on walks.

“We recommend perhaps getting them to wear a coat; some people use booties for the pet’s paws,” said Wright.

Last but not least, both Wright and Park remind owners to treat pets like you would want to be treated yourself. If you're cold, chances are, so is your pet.

The recent frigid temperatures across Connecticut have created car issues for thousands of drivers.

“We’ve seen a huge spike in call volume," said AAA spokesman Aaron Kupec. "Since the beginning of winter, we have received more than 62,000 calls for emergency service in Greater Hartford and eastern Connecticut.”

According to AAA, more than 18,000 calls have been for battery problems, 6,000 for flat tire repairs and 5,800 lockouts.

The cold snap is keeping auto body shops busy as well.

"With these cold temperatures, it’s not only cars, it’s trucks, it’s buses," said Anthony Aniello, owner of the International Auto Service Center in West Hartford. "It’s the whole entire industry. It’s equipment."

Aniello added that his tow truck business has been going nonstop nearly every day.

He said the cold weather fluctuation in Connecticut contributes to battery and engine issues. According to Aniello, a simple winter inspection or tune up won't take more than an hour at most mechanics.

“Make sure that your coolant is at the proper ratio so that your engine won’t freeze or the component parts, brakes and your defrost," he said. "A quick little half hour, hour inspection will alleviate down time, stress and being stranded in that beautiful cold weather during rush hour.”

Kupec recommends drivers check their batteries for any warning signs that could lead to a non-start or a dead battery altogether.

“Some battery warning signs include a grinding or a clicking. If your lights get dim and then get brighter when you rev the engine, and also obvious signs of damage on the battery like cracking or bulging, you want to get that checked out,” he advised.

With several instances of subzero temperatures reported over the past few weeks, February is on track to become the coldest month on record and wind chills will make it feel sub-zero or in the low single digits in some areas in the evening.

It will be sunny on Tuesday, at about 18 degrees, and Wednesday will likely be partly sunny and in the 20s, but temperatures are expected to drop sub-zero on Tuesday night.

Informal snow totals Sunday ranged from 2.5 to 8 inches in Hartford County, 3.4 to 8 inches in Tolland County, 1 to 5.3 inches in Windham County, 3.1 to 6.5 inches in Fairfield County, 1.8 to 4.5 inches in Middlesex County, 3.5 to 5.4 inches in New Haven County and 1.3 to 3.5 inches in New London County, according to the National Weather Service.

Scattered snow showers moved through Connecticut this morning and an arctic cold front will come by mid-day, bringing the possibility of snow squalls, This front is also ushering in three more days of subzero temperatures.

The cold front will bring subzero wind chills to the state this afternoon.

Temperatures will drop into the teens today and continue falling overnight. Expect to see numbers as low as -5 degrees on the thermometer from Thursday night into Friday morning. Wind chills will be well below zero.

The coldest air will arrive on Saturday morning, with lows between -10 and 5 degrees. Fortunately, wind chill will not be a factor Saturday.

Saturday will become cloudy and snow will return to the state, before changing over to sleet and freezing rain on Sunday. The wind will also pick up again Sunday, resulting in a breezy and very cold start to the week.

The extreme and prolonged cold snap this month has led to a record number of water main breaks around the state.

The Metropolitan District Commision serves almost half a million people in 12 cities and towns, including East Hartford, Hartford, Windsor and Newington, and has been extraordinarily busy over the past few days.

MDC CEO Scott Jellison said January is usually the busiest month for repairs and then there's a significant drop off – but not this year. MDC, he said, has serviced 50 water main breaks already this month which is more than they usually repair in all of February.

The good news, according to Jellison, is that MDC has budgeted for all possibilities so, despite a winter that has crews working around the clock, customers will not see an increase in their bills.

Milford Mayor Ben Blake said the city's snow budget is tapped out, and officials will soon dip into the reserve fund to cover the cost of future snow removal.

He cited timing as a major issue, explaining that many of the storms have fallen on weekends and holidays and have lasted hours, if not days.

“The storms have been ongoing. We use a lot of manpower, a lot of product, just to keep going. It hasn't been a normal year, where you get 3 or 4 inches during the day and you can clean up," said Milford's highway foreman Richard Tomasco. "It's a three-day, four-day process, so it's really hurt our budget on overtime.”

The cost of materials has also put a major dent in the budget.

“The fact that we've had to use so much ice melt, so much salt, and ice control, that adds to the budget, too, because you have to put down more when the temperatures are so cold," said Blake. "The sunlight doesn't melt the snow on its own."

The snow also doesn't clear itself from city streets, so no matter how many more storms we see, crews with the Milford Department of Public Works will have to be out cleaning it up.

“They budgeted so much money, and it's always the flip of the coin. You don't know if you get a lot of snow, or if you don't get any, then they're OK,” said Milford resident Glenn Ewaskie.

Some food servers were lucky enough to be enclosed inside their food trucks. Others had to come up with their own methods of keeping warm, like putting tarps over their carts.

The servers were just some of the workers who have to be outside no matter what the thermometer says. On cold days, Middletown-based company Mack Fire Protection receives a higher volume of calls about freezing vehicles.

“You just pretty much try to stay as warm as possible and struggle through the day,” explained Mack Fire Protection employee Chris Cibula.

Construction workers at the corner of Crown and College Streets in New Haven are struggling through the icy temperatures as well, because the masonry work hasn't stopped.

“Today is probably as bad as it gets. It's brutal. Brutally cold, and you're crazy for being out here working," said Randy Cianci with Ronnie DeMeo Construction. "I've been out here for 21 years and I never remember it being this cold for so long in the winter.”

Cianci said he wears layers and takes breaks if he gets too cold.

“The advice is layer up, even some of the uniform requirements are forgiven as officers will try to make sure they are warm to be able to protect and serve,” said New Haven police spokesman Officer Dave Hartman.

Snow is over in Western Connecticut but it continues to fall in Eastern Connecticut, adding more snow to the already-large snow piles across the state. That led to school delays on Tuesday morning as well as problems on the roads across the state.

Temperatures are in the single digits Tuesday morning and highs could reach 20 to 25 degrees.

Light to moderate snow will continue through the morning and diminish around midday Tuesday. Temperatures will rise into the teens and low 20s in some parts of the state.

Flurries and chilly air are also in the forecast for Wednesday as another arctic front hits the state. Thursday through Saturday bringing cold and windy weather, with highs in the teens and overnight lows below zero.

A weak storm system will bring some possible snow and sleet Saturday afternoon into Sunday.

The snow today comes after weekend snowfall brought 3 to 6 inches to much of Connecticut, while the "quiet corner" in the eastern part of the state received at least 8 inches of fresh snow. Staffordville and Putnam saw up to 9 inches.

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People and power companies are gearing up for another winter storm.

Many residents spent Friday night stocking up on groceries ahead of a storm set to bring several fresh inches of snow to the state this weekend.

The cold could become dangerous for residents who lose power at power. Scattered outages are not out of the question, with the potential for wind gusts of over 50 mph Sunday morning.

Eversource Energy, formerly known as Connecticut Light & Power said crews are ready to tackle power problems. Wind could take down trees and prevent crews from working.

“If problems do occur and the winds get up to 35, 40 mph or above, that could delay repair. It’s unsafe when the winds get up that high to get up in the buckets to make repairs to the overhead lines,” said Eversource Energy spokesman Mitch Gross.

For most people, the biggest concerns were more snow and bitter cold.

“Very tired, too much snow, tired of shoveling,” said Thea Ricci, of Southington.

All that work is creating more business for stores, including 44 Hardware Store in Avon. The staff said customers will likely be searching for whatever it takes to melt, breakup and clear ice or snow this weekend.

“I’m sure everybody will go crazy again with the new storm,” said 44 Hardware owner Kevin Cochran.

Several other hardware stores are completely out of pellets for stoves and said they're waiting for emergency shipments.

The colossal structure now spans several properties on Gildersleeve Avenue, and if there were a king of the snow forts, Brian Demski might be the winner.

“Once you’re out here, you get used to the cold and I get building with the blocks, it just brings me back to being a little kid, and I think we’ve all forgotten how to be a little kid. We’re tied up with social media, work and bills,” said Demski.

He explained that the grand fort started with humble beginnings as a practical way to keep snow on the property from falling back into the street.

But now his motivation is the admiration from adults to kids who stop by to get a look.

“If you could have had a picture of that kid’s eyes and the smile on his face, that was worth doing it right there,” said Demski.

Demski said the fort has taken four days, about 35 hours, and countless blocks of snow to build.
He might be one of the few Connecticut residents in favor of more winter weather.

“As long as people showing up and giving me thumbs up, liking it on the computer, I’m just going to keep building it down the street,” said Demski.

He said the wind has not been good for building, as it dries out the snow and makes it hard to pack and stack blocks.

Bridgeport's fleet of 30-35 snow plows and other equipment will be on hand to begin clearing roads as soon as the snow beings to fall. Private contractors have also been placed on standby, according to the mayor's office.

Residents in need of a place to park can take advantage of the following locations:

All school parking lots during off hours through Monday night

Parking lots across the street from the Ballpark at Harbor Yard

The North End Library at 3455 Madison Avenue

The Veteran's Memorial Park entrance off Madison Avenue

The municipal parking lot at the corner of Fairfield Avenue and Jetland Street

The Bridgeport Health Department at 752 East Main Street

The parking lot adjacent to the former Waltersville School at 95 Gilmore Street

The city has been in contact with United Illuminating to prepare for the possibility of downed wires and power outages due to anticipated winds of up to 50 mph, according to a spokesperson for the mayor's office.

Those in need of emergency shelter are urged to call 211. More information is available online or by calling the Bridgeport Emergency Operations Center hotline at 203-579-3829 or 203-576-1311.